How to have Confidence in a time of Uncertainty

What is Confidence?

Confidence: a word we are hearing in our daily lives more than ever. Confidence in leaving the house. Confidence in going out to eat. Confidence in applying for jobs. Confidence in video call interviews. Confidence in adapting to virtual events. And confidence in our leaders, that our economy and society will soon recover.

“The Quality of Being Certain of your Abilities or Having Trust in People, Plans or the Future.” – Cambridge Dictionary

 

Confidence in Times of Uncertainty

With an uncertain future, it is important to build confidence in our own abilities. Whilst we cannot change the actions of others, we can have confidence in our own actions.  Now it is as important as ever to have confidence in ourselves so we can continue to go out and achieve things. It would be very easy to lose confidence during the current pandemic and give up. Whether this be job searching, or meeting friends at the pub. Having confidence to achieve your goals is the first hurdle to overcome when becoming more self-assured.

Forbes.com published an article by Frances Bridges on the ‘10 Ways to Build Confidence’, and whilst being in a completely different societal norm than when it was first published, these 10 ways are still as relevant as ever and can be used to build confidence in your personal or professional life.

 

The Ten Steps to Building Confidence

 

Step 1) Achieve Goals

The first step is to ‘get things done’. “Confidence is built on accomplishment”, no matter how big or small the task, if you achieve the goals you set out to achieve each day, you will feel as though you can take on even bigger challenges with each day that passes. It is also key to ‘monitor your progress’.

 

Step 2) Monitor Your Progress

Secondly, to achieve your goals, big or small, “monitor your progress” with them as this will help you “build confidence as you see the progress you’re making in real time.” In today’s society, even going food shopping can be a big challenge, so why not try a petrol station, a local parade of shops? Start small and build your confidence slowly. Once you look back at where you started, you’ll be self-assured of your progress and ambitious to go further.

 

Step 3) Do the Right Thing

Step three is to “do the right thing.” Bridges said, “your actions and your decisions define your character”, and by doing what you believe to be right, will enable you to be yourself, and you’ll be far “prouder of who you are.” Whether or not you believe going to the pub is the right thing to do for the economy or for your health, if you make an assertive decision it is important to have faith behind your actions. If you can’t back up your own decisions no one else will be able to either.

 

Step 4) Healthy Body, Healthy Mind!

It goes without saying a healthy body leads to a healthy mind and Forbes’ suggest, at number four, exercising regularly makes it “harder to be anxious when there is not excess energy to draw upon”, therefore, staying active will naturally boost your confidence. Regular exercise help builds confidence further as it improves our body image. Exercise keeps the body healthy and toned resulting in improved self-esteem and confidence in the way you look.

 

Step 5) Only Thing to Fear is Fear Itself

Being fearless is easily said by Forbes as the fifth way to build confidence, but a lot harder for you to put into practice. However, it is important to remember “failing isn’t your enemy”, you have to put fear to the side and remember how much you want to achieve your goal.  “You gain strength, courage and confidence by every experience in which you really stop to look fear in the face. You are able to say to yourself, ‘I have lived through this horror. I can take the next thing that comes along.’ You must do the thing you think you cannot do.” – Eleanor Roosevelt. Fear should only make you more ambitious to conquer your goals. Having confidence also means you are not afraid to “stand-up for yourself” which

Step 6) Don’t Let People Put You Down

Bridge outlines as confidence-gaining step six. If people doubt you, it is easy to subsequently doubt yourself, but as Heath Ledger says in ’10 Things I Hate About You’, “Don’t let anyone, ever make you feel like you don’t deserve what you want.” The biggest confidence boost will come with proving those who doubted you wrong.

 

Step 7) Follow Through With Actions

Forbes’ seventh step is all about ‘following through’ with what you’ve set out to achieve. People will respect you more, and you will “respect yourself” if your “action gives your words meaning” and you accomplish your goals.  Gary Vaynerchuk, founder and CEO of VaynerX believed in ‘pursuing something you believe in wholeheartedly’. “Conviction creates confidence. I have so much energy because I so deeply believe in my impact and have zero doubts about my execution. You have to believe in what you’re doing, surround yourself with people who push you and have similar aspirations, and avoid those who bring you down. On top of that, consume content from experts, face your fears headfirst, and develop gratitude.”  In addition to following your goals wholeheartedly, “the foundation of unhappiness is decisions made for short-term comfort that impede long-term goals.”

 

Step 8) Get Comfortable with Sacrifice

It is important to remember “big goals require big sacrifices” which is number eight on Forbes’ list to build confidence. Once you achieve this long-term goal, the sense of pride you will feel will be far greater than any short-term comfort. You’ll be filled with self-gratitude for pushing through and achieving your long-term goals.

 

Step 9) Stop Caring About What Others Think

Similar to number six, Bridges’ ninth step in building confidence is “not caring what others think.” It is all about having a positive mental attitude, if you believe you can do it, then you can. Building self-confidence is a matter of changing your beliefs about yourself, you can say, ‘I’m good enough, I’m smart enough and, I can do this.’ In the current economic climate, we may all find times when our self-esteem takes a bashing and we have to proactively set aside time to work on improving our confidence. Working in recruitment we are able to play a part in recognising confidence issues and supporting applicants to raise their confidence especially if they have taken a number of knock backs. Before a job interview, or important zoom call, there are small things you can do to boost your confidence. Even though you are sat behind a computer screen wear something you feel smart in. If you feel smart you are far more likely to come across confident. Sit up tall as again, having a good posture will show to others than you are self-assured and confident in your own ability.

 

Step 10) Do What You Love

Forbes’ last note, number ten, on building confidence is to “do more of what makes you happy.” If you create time for your favourite leisure activities, you will be able to recharge yourself and be the best version of you. It is important to strike a balance with your work and your social life. Filling your leisure time with friends and family is a good way to channel confidence as people who care about you will fill you with self-assurance. Talking to people you are close too will give you a much-needed confidence boost. Corrie Elieff suggests her “confidence comes from knowing my next step, and having one advisor makes that easy”— Corrie Elieff, Cofounder and Chairman at YESA, Founder of Cardone Canada. Your advisors can be for work, or personal life for example, but choose people who you are morally aligned with and have more experience and knowledge to add value to your life.

 

An Easy Tip to Boost Confidence before Interviews

“Come to the interview with a good baseline of knowledge about the company” as Alison Doyle wrote for thebalancecareers.com. You will feel more powerful stepping into an interview scenario having done your research, as Thomas Jefferson said, “knowledge is power”, you will be ready to tackle any questions thrown your way. What’s more, having a reference from an employer will boost your confidence, Sue Andrews business and HR consultant at KIS Finance said, “employers need to know if your CV accurately represents your skills and experience, so they often rely on references to back up your claims.” If you know you have strong references, then providing them at interviews is a step closer to achieving your dream job, as you can have faith your references will highlight your strongest attributes. “If you’ve done your homework and have all the information you need to do well, it can work wonders for your confidence” – caba.org. Now more than ever it is important to stand out from the crowd when applying for jobs, simply by having background knowledge on the company and a good reference, you are already ticking boxes.

At the end of the day, being confident comes down to being happy.

 

Having confidence is all about stepping out of your comfort-zone and trying something new. Once you’ve gone out and achieved something, it is no longer new, and thus you can be more confident. In a time of uncertainly, the one thing you can make certain is your confident approach to whatever challenges you face.

 

If you need a confidence boost in your job search, please do not hesitate to get in contact with us today.

www.jbrecruitment.co.uk                helen@jbrecruitment.co.uk               Tel:0203 488 2620

 

Blog written by Charlotte Jefford for JB Recruitment